The Factory
by JustCallMeDisc0rd3r
Summary: Eris and Karloff are from two completely different social classes. They are not even similar to each other except for they are both outcasts where they are from, and they are both curious about this Master Chen and his Tournament Of Elements...
1. Prologue

_A.N. - Okay..._

_So..._

_My initial idea was that Master Chen could be making the non-elementals resulting from failure in the tournament dig for a weapon or the Golden Armor or some sort of thing like that._

_SPOILERS BEWARE, IF THIS SPOILER IS LEGIT YOU MIGHT WANNA STEER CLEAR._

_Anyway. I've been informed that "The Factory"...is Chen's noodle factory..._

_And I'm just a morbid son of a bitch. XDD_

_So here is another story about the factory..._

_Gahhhhhd..._

_Noodles..._

_Of course..._

X.X.X

Eris

I lived in an affluent neighborhood in the more pleasant side of NinjaGo.

This community was a Russian speaking one composed of immigrants that strove to make a better life for themselves and their families.

And a better life they had provided.

I lived in this place...

But I did not fit in...

First of all my dress was definitely strange, no matter what I put on it always looked crazy.

Mismatched...

Disorderly, but in a strangely appealing way.

Then there was my eyes...

One brown and one green.

It was like I had eyes from two completely different species of human.

I was a bizarre case.

Also my behavior, I was a kooky one, always speaking in riddles. I just loved the faces people made when they couldn't figure it out...

And then there were my abilities...

I could make stuff float about and I could make plants and animals do some wild things...

I thought I was just a freak for the longest time because I had no control over when the skies would rain apple juice or hail snocones...

But then my mother read me a story about the first LunLiujitzu Master and his many guardians.

She said I was a descendant of a man named Karayahn, who was the Master of Chaos.

The book read that Chaos was one of the rarest elements, because whoever had such an element had the ability to thwart the natural order of all the other elements, essentially being the polar opposite of the first LunLiujitzu master.

This was dangerous, as the Master of Chaos had an inborn tendency to want to overthrow the creator of NinjaGo.

I was not a bad person...

I was just bad at controlling my power.

I achieved it after many, many years of fine tuning in solitary locations...

But I was still an outcast...

Until I found out about the Tournament Of The Elements held by a man named Master Chen.

Where other descendants of Elemental Masters could compete to see who was strongest.

And I thought why not? It could be fun.

And I could possibly meet more people like me...

X.X.X

Karloff

I lived in a poor town in the Russian community of NinjaGo.

People came to make a better life for their families but ended up off just as bad as when they were still in Russia...

The earth was dry and hard as a rock and couldn't support life no matter what you sacrificed to whatever deity you worshipped...

The people here were just as hard as the land...

Nerves of steel...

But I did not fit in.

I had nerves of steel too...

But...

I guess it was more in the literal sense.

There was no mystery to my powers.

I was told stories by my mother, stating that I was a descendant of an ancient LunLiujitzu Guardian named Barzillai, who was the Master of Metal.

I could form an armor around my entire body that was about four inches thick, and I used that to my advantage often, taking my personal strength and the strength of the metal and using it to take down large prey so that my family could eat...

I forged some metal gauntlets so that I could till the ground so maybe we could try to grow vegetables...

But I found a strange comfort in those gauntlets...

People left me alone...

About my bad English speaking or the way I looked or otherwise...

Because who would want to mess with a guy who wore ten pound iron gloves?

It did get lonely though.

I didn't have many friends...

And no one that I knew of shared ability to master an element...

But then I found out about the Tournament Of Elements I thought, why not?

My curiosity got the better of me.

I went to the meeting place...

And I finally got to see other people like me.


	2. Chapter 1

Karloff

There were more people waiting for Master Chen's boat than I had predicted.

So, so many people, all that I did not recognize, that I did not care about.

It would be easy to take them down.

We were waiting for quite a while, and there was nowhere to sit, the heavy tension was relieved when the boat finally came in to view on the horizon.

A man on the ship greeted us all, introducing himself as Clouse, to those who were not late, and started to let us board.

The ship held less room than the dock, but there was much more of use in that small amount of space.

I found some things to practice on, namely the large metal barrels, which were easy to toss around and get a feel for.

I wanted to hone whatever skills I had before I tried fighting my actual adversaries in tournament combat.

Soon though, I grew bored with this, and I started to wander the ship.

It was cold...

And I was stupid not to have brought a coat or a blanket...

I did not think I would need it...

But I did find someone who had one...it was thin and small and she did not seem affected by the cold.

I guessed it would not hurt to ask.

I walked up to her and tapped her arm.

"Miss? Karloff wants to-"

She shrugged away from me, casting a scathing sideways glance.

"No, ma'am, you misunderstand, Karloff not want to fight, he just wants-"

She turned just a little, face somewhat frightened, but she was not looking at me.

"It's okay...I can handle myself..."

I turned to follow her gaze and I saw a mad with brown hair wearing a red ninja gi and I grimaced.

"It's none of his business!" I growled. "Karloff cold...Karloff just wants her cloak..."

The red ninja grinned. "You look like you have big enough mittens, why not leave the gal alone?"

I ground my teeth together and approached the cocky little man. "These NOT mittens!" I told him, tapping myself on the chest. "These crush ninja..."

He chuckled. "I'd like to see you try..."

I dared to advance on him further, nearly nose to nose with him. "Don't think Karloff afraid of you..." I growled in a low voice.

He still smiled, he still mocked me. "No, you don't think much at all do you?"

My bad English wasn't my fault.

But here this man was mocking my intelligence.

That little bastard...

He had succeeded in getting me nice and angry.

And he was going to pay for it...

I grabbed each of his lapels in my heavily armored fists and lifted him off of the ground.

He struggled against my grip, scared now...

Mocking smirk no longer on his face.

"J-j-just jump in whenever you feel like it!" He stammered.

I touched my nose to his, glaring hatred. "You say Karloff is not smart...?"

"I'd say Karloff is plenty smart not to start something he can't finish."

I turned to this new voice to see a boy dressed in a green gi, he must've been a friend of the ninja.

He seemed reasonable.

But I could not see past my desires, fueled by fury.

_He said I was stupid..._

_I am not stupid..._

With that thought I dropped the red ninja, bringing my fist back and slamming it hard into his chest.

He flew backwards with a yelp of surprise and pain.

I could hear the breath leave his lungs in one powerful gust for the split second that my fist had connected.

I grinned, glancing over at the boy in green.

"Whoopsie..." I cooed. "Guess Karloff **not** smart..."


	3. Chapter 2

Karloff

The red ninja stood up before me, getting into a stance, and he shouted.

"FIRE!"

In his stance he shifted, holding his hands out from his body, as they had caught on fire, and he started to throw fragments of the flames toward me.

I held out my armored fists, assuring that the flames did not hit me; they dispersed in a shower of sparks as they struck my metal gloves, and when the onslaught ceased I slammed my fists together and felt weight bear down on me as my four-inch thick iron armor encased my entire body.

The ninja's face went from angry and confident to shocked and even a little frightened.

And I grinned at his split second of weakness, lunging at him, attacking, throwing punches, then rearing back on to my hands and knees.

I resembled a gorilla, I've been told, when I fight, but I was just so used to the stance, the stance I took when I was trying to make a garden out of rocky soil or when I killed an animal for food.

It was a stance I was comfortable with..

And I wasn't going to change.

He was dodging most of my blows and it irritated me greatly, so I stood, crouching now, and I leapt up, turning my body and striking him in the chest with the back of my fist. He hit the wall of the cabin with a pained cry.

I was actually a very graceful fighter, despite all the extra weight on my shoulders.

This weight helped me tone my muscles and increase my pain tolerance.

It is why his flames did not hurt me, even as the metal grew hot and seared my skin.

There were burns for sure, but I could not feel much of anything on the surface...

Like I said...nerves of steel.

The red ninja tried to get back on his feet, but I was not going to have this.

As he was lifting back onto his knees I offered him a powerful uppercut into his ribs and he flew back far. I heard his thud, and concluded that he had landed on the roof of the cabin.

I chuckled to myself and leapt up; I saw the man in red, and as I was falling I lifted my arms and slammed my fists down on the red clay shingles.

They shattered beneath my metal hands, but the ninja was no longer there.

I looked up to see him a few steps away, and I attacked, trying to hit him with the back of my fist again.

It was so effective the last time.

But this time he dodged...

Ending up at the roof's edge.

He looked back, that flash of panic returning for only a moment, but then he looked back to me and assumed a fighting stance.

I threw myself at him, and he moved to the left, allowing me to drop from the roof and back to the deck.

I could hear him laughing.

He still mocked me.

He still needed to be taught his lesson...

I climbed up the side of the cabin, smashing my fist through the bottom of the roof and grabbing the ninja's foot.

He fell through the hole I created, resisting gravity and my strength, both of which weighed him down, and eventually he slipped and gave way, falling onto his back.

He stood.

Attacking me again, he struck me with fists in flames, roaring in frustration, voicing his exertion to me.

My metal armor burned me, but I noticed my being knocked back into the rope siding more.

I advanced on him, and he struck me again with a powerful blow; I went flying back yet again, landing on the turbine that powered the movement of the ship.

He followed me.

Not knowing when to quit.

We matched our attacks exactly, fists slamming hard against fists blow for blow, sparks flying.

I had had enough.

I gave him one last good punch in the chest, throwing him back to the deck of the ship, and I followed suit, looming over him and laughing.

I had won.

I raised an arm above my head and prepared to pound this arrogant, hateful man into unconsciousness, but a voice sounded from above me.

"Hang off!" Clouse shouted.

I hesitated, then stood upright, feeling instant relief from the pressure as I let my armor fade away for use another time.

I walked away.

I had not gotten the ending that I wanted.

But he knew that he had lost this round...

And I prayed he was smart enough to know that I was not as stupid as he thought...


	4. Chapter 3

Karloff

The island was in view from the ship, otherwise Clouse wouldn't have announced our arrival.

Though I got not more than a glimpse from where I stood, so I tried to slither my way through the crowd.

"Let me see." I said, though it was more of a question.

Turned out I was trying to sneak past the red ninja, who shoved me back, narrowing his eyes at me as if I had shoved first.

"Do you mind!?" He asked snarkily.

I ignored him however, I was not in the mood to fight with him again.

Besides...

Now I stood in front of him, and I could see the island clearly.

We docked before the massive entrance of a castle-like building, a ramp lowering so that we could take our first steps onto the land.

Clouse walked first, as he was similar to a tour guide and we all followed, nervous and eager to see this new place.

"Welcome to Chen's Island." He began, walking forward along a paved path, hands clasped behind his back.

"The Tournament Of Elements welcomes it's brave fighters."

We all walked down this paved path, I myself looking on with awe as the massive front doors opened to reveal a gaudy yet beautiful round room with a purple stripe of carpet running down its middle.

Along the edges of this carpet sat twenty or more painted men hitting old leather drums and chanting in a language I did not understand.

We all sat around the edges of the circular room, and the strange tribal music ended when the gong sounded.

Clouse moved to the front of the room, a little to the left, and gestured upwards with one hand.

"All rise for Master Chen..."

None of us rose at first, at least not that I was aware of, because I assumed many of us did not know who Chen was, and had no reason to rise.

But slowly and surely, even though we had all just sat down, we stood, if only to obey the respect that was pounded into us all since birth.

I followed the gesture of Clouse's hand, looking upwards to see a large throne, serpent-like in theme, being lowered from the rafters, and when the chair had touched the floor, I was able to see this man who was seemingly treated like a god...

While to me he merely looked like a drag queen...

Around his neck he wore a purple sash of serpent skin, embroidered with cream colored spikes, his hood was actually not a good at all, it was a massive snake skull, obviously boiled and cleaned so that it would be as pretty and white as it was. He had thick sideburns and a long mustache paired with just a slight bit of dark hair under his lower lip, and beneath all of his gaudy accessories he wore and elegant red gi, inlaid with gold and purple threads, and around his eyes he wore red eyeshadow...

At least...it appeared to be red eyeshadow.

He grinned. "Welcome! To the Tournament Of Elements!" He greeted, voice cooky and eccentric. "Now you can all di-"

A loud slam sounded and we all turned to see that the front doors were now closed.

"-Rect your attention to me!" He finished, cackling madly, but allowing us all to breathe a sigh of relief.

He stood, starting to walk down the steps adjacent to his throne.

"Never before have I seen so many elemental fighters be under one roof."

He approached and gestured to some of the elementals individually. "I see master of fire, earth, shadow, speed, even a prophesied green savior."

He looked to an elder man. "And a former pupil has returned."

He gestured behind himself, pointing to the large golden gong that had been struck earlier.

"This symbol before you is for the Anacondrai, fiercest Serpentine warriors to ever roam this land."

He turned back to us. "It's creed: Only one can remain."

Someone struck the gong once more and it split, an "s" shape cracking through its middle, behind it is a board containing little slots that held pictures of us, and we are each pinned against another elemental in a bracket.

I was pinned against the red ninja...

Of course...

"Behold!" Chen rejoined, gesturing behind him yet again. "A Jade Blade. Here it represents life, obtain it, move on! Allow your opponent to take it, loser!" He grinned at us all. "The rules are simple..." He walked around the circle, making sure to get a look at each of us. "Every match will be different! No two fights will be the same. Your powers will keep you in the tournament, use it or lose it!"

He stopped walking when he reached me, and since I was sitting, he loomed above my head.

So I stood, looking him in the eye. "What does Karloff win...?" I asked.

He turned to me, smiling that kooky smile of his.

"Win...and stay on the island. Win it all and you'll receive fortunes beyond your wildest dreams! And lifetime supply of Master Chen noodles."

I couldn't really care less about the fortunes he mentioned to me, but when he mentioned the lifetime supply of food I immediately thought of how great it would be to finally be able to properly provide for my impoverished village.

"But no one is here because of noodle."

_Not true._

"You want the glory of being the greatest fighter in all of NinjaGo!"

Everyone clapped, me included, only because of the peer pressure, but the older man with grey hair raised his hand.

"What happens if they lose?" He asked.

"Lose?" Chen asked dramatically, as if the word was unfamiliar to him. "Who here likes to lose?"

All of us laughed.

None of us were partial to losing.

Even if it was more likely for us to lose than win anything...

We were all here to beat the other at any cost...

"Now please..." Chen finally digressed. "Enjoy my island. It's a super fun, happy place!" And he laughed again. "Fun time on me!"

Clouse, as serious as ever, looked over us all with mute hatred. "You'll now be each shown to your rooms..."

He clapped twice and a sliding door opened to the right, allowing a plethora of painted women to stroll out elegantly in a single file line.

They went around the room, each claiming a person to escort, the first in line claiming the person at the end of the half-circle we had formed when we sat, the next claiming the next after, and so on.

All the while traditional theatre music plays.

The ladies do a dance in sequence, and take the left arms of their escortees, moving them about.

My escort had a particularly strong grip, and she was leading me to the far room, where there were stairs. She sent me up, hanging on to me the entire time, and we moved around that level of the building until we reached a pair of metallic sliding doors.

"Your Silver Suite...Master Karloff..." She cooed in a lovely voice, but I was not swayed by her charm.

"Karloff's element...not...silver..." I told her.

She laughed. "Well, it sounds better than "Iron Suite"." She opened the doors.

"This room is correlated to your element, themed to match everything that we have learned about you before your arrival. If there is anything not to your liking, come and tell me, and I shall pass the message to Chen, and have it fixed..."

I started to walk into the room, but she placed a hand on my chest, holding me back. "I'm rooting for you..." She winked. "And if you need anything...you know..." She looked me up and down and I was immediately disgusted. "Other than a renovation...don't hesitate to find me..."

I grimaced, but tried to be polite. "Karloff try his hardest not to...hesitate..."

She chuckled under her breath and left me be.

My room...

Was so beautiful...

I had never had a true room before.

No dressers or mirrors or desk accessories...

Or a bed...

I walked over to my bed, a very large one with pewter colored sheets and blankets.

It was very plush.

And I laid down immediately, snuggling rather shamefully into the warm comforters.

I had to stay...I had to try my hardest to stay here as long as I could...

I had to win...

So that I could have this for my sisters...

And my mother...

The children who's parents died from disease and starvation...

I had to stay...

I had to win and save them.

After...

A nice...

Warm...

Nap...


	5. Chapter 4

Karloff

_My little sisters..._

_One four and the other one seven..._

_They had one of my hands in each of theirs..._

_They were pulling me along to play with them..._

_Their play area was not very big..._

_Nor was if very clean..._

_But they've managed somehow to find some beautiful little plastic tea cups among the ruins that we called home and they had everything scrubbed as clean as possible, all set out carefully on a low wooden bench...made by my father, who was now dead._

_Mother even made a tray of creamy biscuits and some tea for the party they wanted to throw._

_And it was not easy to get the ingredients for those biscuits..._

_Or cheap..._

_I sat down with my two beautiful sisters, and they smiled._

_"Would you like some tea, master Karloff?"_

_I tried to suppress my laughter. "Yes, Karloff would like...tea..."_

_They poured some for me, and I took a biscuit after graciously asking._

_It was perfect..._

_Simple, if not dirty...but perfect..._

_I closed my eyes briefly and took a sip of tea, and when I set my cup down and re-opened my eyes I saw that my two sisters had their heads laid down on the table..._

_Their eyes sunken in and glazed..._

_Their faces dirty..._

_Arms skinny..._

_"I'm hungry..." Murmured my older sister feebly. "And...L...Lilly won't wake up..."_

_It didn't take a genius to tell that little Lilly was dead..._

_But I went to her side and shook her anyway._

_She was like a twig. So thin and brittle..._

_And my mother wailed in horror in the background._

X.X.X

_Music?_

_Why is there music...?_

I awoke, and yet I didn't feel awake yet.

I tossed and turned in my soft bed, trying to block the sound of music playing in my ears.

But a familiar and unpleasant voice suddenly filled the room.

"Hello fighters!" He greeted. "Hidden around my island are enough Jade Blades for every participant except for one. The one who returned to the palace arena empty handed loses!"

I groaned to myself. "Karloff don't want to wake yet..."

"The tournament begins...now!"

_Damnit..._

I scrambled upright and flew out of my room so see a battle already going down.

I did not know any of these people...

But I saw that there were four blades in just this hall.

So I rushed towards the one nearest me, where a man with white and black hair toiled with another with the spiky grey hair and strange lopsided smile.

I threw one of them back, I didn't want to hurt anyone...

I just wanted the blade...

I was fueled by the horror of my nightmare and that drove my desire to save my family through the roof into the heavens...

The one with black hair stared at me intently, and there was a buzzing in my brain.

A buzzing that soon grew into a mild throbbing, and then a full blown headache.

It felt as if my head were going to explode.

I fell to my knees and shouted in agony.

He walked up and took the blade. "Forgive me. But I must take this." And left me be.

The headache faded soon after he was gone, and the hall was empty. I needed a blade...

I stood and ran about frantically.

There weren't any...

Where did they all go.

I ran outside, maybe there would be one in the courtyard?

And there was...

Oh yes thank god there was a blade there...

And I was going to have it...

When I looked up from the blade to the opposite side of the courtyard, looking for a threat...

I saw my most hated adversary...

It was the ninja in red...


	6. Chapter 5

Karloff

We stood, both staring at the lovely blade at the center of the courtyard, and then we looked to each other.

I did not like him.

Nor he me...

We were both determined to win...

So this was certain to be a challenge...

Even more so than our first fight, and then we weren't even trying to beat the other, I just wanted him to stop calling me stupid...

The red ninja stepped back with one foot, raising a fist in flames.

I slammed my fists together, summoning my armor.

"GET ON WITH IT!" Shouts Chen over the speakers, angering me.

I wanted this to be over just as much as he did, the only difference was he was sitting on his lazy ass watching while I was in the eye of the storm.

I rushed forward at the ninja, throwing a right punch, then a left, then repeat in quick succession. My blows were quick and brutal despite my size and my weight and soon I had knocked him back, away from the Jade Blade.

He growled in frustration and sat up, as he was on his back, and brought his fire power back, aiming it at me full force.

I am forced away from the blade as well, nearly losing my balance, but I regain it in time to see him scooping the blade up in his greedy little fingers.

I run at him and jump, planning to hit him over the head, strike him unconscious, but he dodged, and my fists cracked the fragmented concrete beneath our feet instead.

The good news is he had dropped the blade.

I moved to take it just as he does and somehow, instead of either of us being impaled by it, it is knocked into the air.

We both looked up, then to each other.

We continued our battle for a short while, and I am winning, he is on the ground and cannot fight with his puny fire hands because I have them pinned beneath my knees.

I punched once, twice, and he is out cold.

I stood and retrieved the blade.

"Now...to find the palace..."

It shouldn't have been so difficult...but each building was more intricate and elegant than the last.

I peeked inside each one that I passed until I found the one I was looking for.

I lifted the blade, grinning eagerly at my fellow competitors. "Karloff wins!" I shouted proudly.

Chen giggled as he sat upon is strange serpent-laden pedestal, and I was giddy with my success.

_In the future I will need to watch out for the one with the buzzing power... _I thought. _He seems to be the only trouble I will encounter...him and perhaps the speedy one..._

My right hand suddenly grew very light, and I felt my gauntlet slipping.

I looked to it to see it fall, seemingly in slow motion. The fingers unfurled, the Jade Blade it held falling free when the gauntlet hit the floor.

Then I saw the red ninja slip past me, swiping the blade.

"Ha!" He began mockingly. "Looks like you've got a screw loose!"

I roared angrily as he used his flaming fists like a rocket, hovering across the palace courtroom and landing on the platform on the opposite side, where he then placed the blade into the intricate display stand along with all the others.

All cheered for the red ninja, a man of which holds all of my hatred.

"WE have a LOSER!" Chen shouted over the cheering, pointing to me.

The back of my neck grew hot with embarrassment as all the contestants turned to me, staring.

I took my gauntlet from the floor, as well as the fallen screw and bolted it back into place.

"That's not fair!" I exclaimed, pointing accusingly at the man in red. "He cheated!"

He shrugged. "I did what I had to do."

An elder man approached him. "That is not how you win..." He told him.

And he couldn't have been more right.

I would have never stooped as low as he had.

"I...lose..." I whispered, bowing my head. I was glad that I knew not to cry before others, but my eyes did sting for just a moment. I let my family down...

I let all of Pylonia down.

I raised my head, glaring angrily at them all. "Karloff never wanted to be in this stinking island!" For emphasis, I gestured to myself, hand on my chest.

Chen frowned for half of a second. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear you did not enjoy your stay." His smile returned. "I guess this worked out for the best."

Something about him made me want to smile too. Whether it was his voice or his goofy grin or his ridiculous makeup...but I smiled right back.

"This is GOODBYE!" He shouted, then pressing a button on a pedestal to his right.

The floor beneath me gave way and I started to fall.

Instinctively I reach up, trying to keep myself from falling but it is too late, and all I can do is cry out for help or something...

At least I was falling for only a short time before my head impacted the floor and I was introduced to the darkest of darkness.

X.X.X

_A.N. - Karloff's bio states he lives in a land called Metaonia, but I have renamed it. Pyl is Russian for metal, hence Pylonia...(it just sounds less...cheesy. XD)_


	7. Chapter 6

Karloff

Ou-aourah...

Ou-aourah...

This strange chanting continued as I am dragged down a long and narrow hallway.

Decorated only with torches...

I kept slipping in and out of consciousness, head pounding...

I keep getting flashes of my nightmares in my mind, my littlest sister dead from starvation, my next youngest soon to follow.

"Pust' Karloff idti..." I mumbled, not angry...too groggy to be.

I did want them to let me go, however...hence my demand for them to do so.

"Shut up!" One of them growled back, hefting me up higher so I wouldn't be so difficult to drag, as my metal body provided much friction against the rocky floor. "I've had enough of your mumbling."

I am not mumbling, I thought. I'd be in my right mind to tell him.

"Eto ne bormotal, chto eto-" And then I realized I was speaking to him in Russian.

"It isn't mumbling..." I repeated, in English. "It's my language..."

"I don't care." Retorted the cultist. "It is giving me a headache..."

I was about to offer him a few choice words when I heard Chen shout.

"Bring out the loser!"

And the chanting continued relentlessly.

"Ou-aourah..."

"Ou-aourah."

The group of painted men drug me into a circular room, one just as bleak as the hallway.

At the center resided a mass of at least forty cult members, all prostrated.

I struggled against the grip of the men carrying me.

"Keep your hands OFF Karloff!" I shouted. "Karloff wish he never sign up for this!"

The men throw me to the floor, but I flung my armored hands out, catching myself before I struck it.

"Ou-aourah. Ou-aourah!"

That damned verse was getting on my nerves.

"What is chanting for?" I asked Chen, pissed now.

He grinned down at me, clearly enjoying his place on that throne. "They're saying...only one can remain..."

I stared at him incredulously.

"Like I said." He continued. "Use it or lose it."

The cultists restrained me and Chen points his staff in my direction, one that I hadn't noticed until just now.

A blue stream of light leaked from the head of the staff and floated toward me, and when it came into contact it wrapped around me, instantly freezing me. The freezing did not come with the numbing agent either.

"S-s-stop!" I managed to stammer, not able to resist the light. It was hurting me greatly, as if it were pulling my bones out of place as bringing them out to my surface.

Soon the light obeys my plea, retreating back into Chen's staff, and I sit up swaying for a moment before my weakness is attracted to the floor with almost magnet-like intensity.

That same magnet nearly kept me glued to the floor as I struggled to sit back up. When I was upright I tapped my fists together, seeing that my bare arms did not gain the sheen of iron that I desired.

"What...happened to my metal...?!"

"Your metal?" Chen asked. "Oh it's mine now." He cackled. "But now I will let you go..."

I smiled weakly. "Really?"

"To the FACTORY!"

The cultists seized me one last time and started to drag me out of the room.

Naturally I tried to fight them. "No! Let Karloff go! No! NO!"

I thrashed against their powerful grips, though no matter how hard I struggled it seemed that they were stronger than I, and they kept taking me down further and further...

Deep into the recesses of the island...

And when we finally reached the upper levels of hell they threw me down, leaving me to my new environment."

"Get up!" Demanded a powerful voice, the owner nudging me with a foot.

"Otvali, svoloch'..." I replied harshly, the translation being "fuck off, scum."

"Vy ne yedinstvennyy, kto govorit na russkom zdes'," The voice said, catching me off guard. "I seychas vstavay!"

Translation: You aren't the only one who speaks Russian here, now get up!

I stood, legs shaking, then I lifted my head to see my commander.

And I must have suffered a little damage during my fall down the trapdoor, but I didn't realize until just now that the voice that was speaking to me seconds earlier was a woman.

X.X.X

_A.N. - Damn D!sc0rd! How many cliffhangers are you going to write!? XD_


	8. Chapter 7

Karloff

Well this woman before me was a shock. She was tall, though not as tall as I, with short, almost boyish blonde hair, fly-aways in every direction. She wore an orange jumpsuit stained black and ripped in some areas, and a tough expression etched into her facial features. The fact that she was a woman did not really shock me. There were female elementals in the tournament, what bothered me most about her was her eyes.

One was green and the other brown...it was very unsettling.

"Are you going to just stand there or are you going to tell me who you are?" The woman asked, hands on her hips, her accent now apparent to me.

"I am Karloff Zhelezo..." I muttered. "Who are you?"

"Eris...Eris Raslad. Master of Chaos...or at least I was until those BASTARD CULTISTS..." She very violently exclaimed those two words, catching the attention of everyone in the large room. "...took my power away..."

Some of the guards came to investigate, these painted just as the cultists were, merely dressed in a different manner.

"Oh..." Eris said softly, turning to them. "Is it time for me to play with the snake again?" She laughed, a low, strangely uncaring laugh. "How many hours must I last? One? Two...? Or will it be three?"

It took me a moment to realize she was teasing the guards, her questions said in such a way that they sounded suggestive.

"You will be locked in with him for a while..." Said a guard gruffly.

"Oh goodie!" Eris said, clapping. "This will be so fun! I do love a good snake."

I saw her wink, and I nearly gagged, and that was when they took her away.

They did not have to drag her, however, she walked on her own accord.

Made me wonder if her suggestive speaking was a joke or if it was truth.

But after a moment's thought I decided I did not want to know.

X.X.X

_A.N. - Karloff's last name is iron in Russian, Eris's is discord...lets just pretend that that isn't obvious to these two Russian people. LOL. Btw ZaneTheNinjaOfIce, you guessed right! XDD_


	9. Chapter 8

Eris

I sung to the big fella, he liked it when I sung to him.

Clouse did little more than sit with the serpent and feed him when absolutely necessary...I don't know why the poor guy bore such loyalty to that evil, dark-magic wielding, ass master, but he had loyalty to me too, or at least he did not try to eat me alive...and so I was not bothered in the slightest.

All the songs I knew were ones from my childhood, Russian lullabies passed down from generation to generation...

And then there were some modern songs that I enjoyed...

The large purple snake hissed lowly, rattling his tail when I stopped my vocalizing.

"Oh hush." I told him. "I'm trying to think of another one you will like..."

He lowered his mighty head, flicking his forked tongue at me.

I reached out and pet him lightly. "I know, it sucks but they've left me in here a while...I'm running out of material."

The snake slithered around me, creating a barrier that was surprisingly comfortable and warm.

I didn't speak serpentine, but I assumed he was going to allow me to sleep...

We always got so little sleep when working in the factory, making Chen's damn noodles...

I shook my head. "You know if they find us lounging they will punish us both."

I listened to the silence in the air, noting that it didn't seem so brutally quiet.

"I think they're coming now..." I said, removing myself from the serpent's coiled grasp. "You should rough me up, give me a whip or some bites or something..."

He slithered forward, stretching out his full length, then flicking his tail out and hitting me in the face.

"Ow!" I shouted. "Shit...fuck..."

He lashed out again, this time in the ribs, causing me to fall.

Then he used the moment of my weakness to nip my torso...

And that was when the cultists came to take me away.

One of them went to pet the snake. "Good boy." He said, but he wouldn't have any of it, attempting to take a bite out of the cult member.

As they toted me out of the room, clearly taking me back to the factory, I stole a glance back at the large snake, mouthing a silent thanks before the door swung shut and he was out of sight.


	10. Chapter 9

Karloff

"So your job is simple..." The guard told me gruffly. "You pull this lever...and it cuts the noodles. You see?"

He demonstrated for me, clearly angry that he even had to touch this ancient machinery.

"Simple."

My stomach rumbled, it had been a couple of days since I had gotten anything to eat...

And of course the last time that I ate was the very short time that I was in the tournament, so the food that had been provided to me was magnificent, and I missed it so.

"Only one rule exists..." The guard said. "You may not eat the merchandise..."

I glared at the man's ugly painted face. "This not new for Karloff..." I stated. "Karloff rarely eats..."

The guard chuckled. "Well then I guess this won't be a hassle for you."

He turned and walked away, heading toward his group of cult pals.

Of course I was infuriated by their behavior...

But what could I do?

I didn't want to find out what the lady meant by "play with the snake", and I was determined to make sure that that was so.

My reasoning was supported even more when she returned, the right side of her face swollen and red, and there were light red stains near her ribs.

I did not want any part of her punishments.

She strode somewhat stiffly to where I was standing, giving me a dirty look, then casting it toward the guards.

"What the hell!?" She shouted. "This was my position, you can't just move me!"

One of the cultists grinned. "We can...and we will. Perhaps you would like to put your negative energy to good use?"

She stormed up to him, prodding him in the chest with a finger. "You think because you have tattoos and don't wear a shirt that you're hot shit? Well I was the hit shit before your leader used his dark magic to send me here..." She scoffed. "I can cause plenty of chaos without my element..."

The guard she was trying to intimidate laughed loudly in her face, making her only that much more angry with him.

"You talk big, little girl." He began, striking out with a small but powerful fist right into her bloodied ribcage.

She cried out and collapsed, holding herself tightly.

The cultist kicked her over onto her side. "But you aren't as tough as you think you are."

He made a gesture with his hands and the other two guards with him scooped Eris up.

"Take her to her new post." He commanded. "I have a feeling she'll fit right in with the troublemakers..."

The two obeyed, and soon they were gone.

The first man looked in the direction of the workers, me included.

"What are you staring at!?" He asked. "Get back to work or you shall join your little girlfriend in the mill..."

None were brave enough to retort, soon the factory was back in functioning order.

X.X.X

_A.N. - Horray I got my torture innuendos in! :D Because ZaneTheNinjaOfIce is correct, I love to torture my characters. XDD_


	11. Chapter 10

Eris

The man behind me shoved me violently, nearly knocking me to the ground many times.

A few of those times I swung around and tried to offer him the gift of my fist, but sadly there were two others there to keep me in check...and quickly I learned maybe I should wait until we were evenly matched.

"Welcome to the mill!" One of them said, gesturing me to the hell hole before me.

There were giant machines made for processing, and tons of raw material such as wheat and other grains.

On top of that there were manual labor stations where some of the product was being processed by hand...such as the animals being gutted and skinned right here.

"We do use fresh ingredients in our noodle shops, but you see...labor laws do not apply to the island."

One of the cultists grinned. "We send our less well-behaved workers here...for disciplinary reasons."

I ground my teeth together in anger.

_Don't say something stupid._ I told myself. _Don't say something...you'll regret it._

"And you are one of the worst trouble makers we have...so we need to put you somewhere labor intensive..."

He hummed in thought, then pushing me over to a station. "We'll let you wrestle with the livestock. Thank you." They all started to leave. "Good day."

One actually paused though, before leaving, returning to me and clamping something around my neck. "Almost forgot your welcome gift..."

I fiddled with it when he was out of sight, trying to pry it from me but it was as if it had do seams, somehow it just fused together, not showing any signs of weakness.

"The fuck..." I muttered, pulling with all my might.

"What the hell is this...?" I asked myself.

Soon I found out, because when the seam split apart I was torn through with a hard jolt of electricity, and the clamp fused back shut, leaving me twitchy and nauseous on the floor.

X.X.X

_A.N. - Torture yay! Short chapter YAY! Sorry this writer's block is killing me._


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